I finally found a Hobie Mirage kayak that would fit in my budget. It is a 2009 Oasis (in like new condition); I got it for a great price. In any case, I have downloaded and read all of the support material for the current model Oasis (i.e., care and maintenance, storing, transporting, etc.). The current model appears to have some design differences, but I don't really see where there are any significant differences. If anyone is aware of anything that I need to know I would greatly appreciate any advice I can get. I want to keep this boat looking and operating as long as I can. Thanks in advance. BTW: If there is any way to access the owner’s manual and support resources for the older model, please let me know.

You should find all the info you need on these sites if you are prepared to dig about a bit.

Obvious things to start with are things like:-how to maintain, adjust & repair your drives, -how to launch & retrieve your boat without damaging it, you or the drives, -how to self-rescue, -how to go about single-handing your boat (cos I bet you are gonna want to before too long)-what to take with you when you go out-etc.

I am sure that people on these forums will be more than willing to offer the benefit of their knowledge and experience in relation to specific questions you may have as and when these start coming to mind.

The 2009 Oasis is a sturdy, fast, manueverable and capable yak for two people.

After each use, be sure to remove the Mirages, wash with water, dry off, dry lube your Mirages and store them where they are safe.

The only problem with some of the Oasis on the water, seems to be the rudder not being installed correctly. You can find out how to fix this on line.We had steering problems due to the dealer not adjusting the rudder, and it pulled to the left. Once I found out how to adjust the rudder with another person using the control, the rudder control is excellent. In tight situations, my wife puts her Mirage in the up right position with the fins up against the yak, and I can basically spin/turn the yak in a 360 with it pivoting on the rudder with me pedaling.

Re steering any boat in water. You can't forget about actively steering anymore than you can forget about actively steering your car on a road.

We don't use it for fishing so the new update re rod holders is not important.

Re the dual steering with the new Oasis: My wife doesn't want to steer, so I do it from the back. Also, with only one steering handle on your Oasis, Murphy's law works better for those of us who own the older models like yours. The newer ones have double the potential of problems with two steering controls.

We got my wife the Hobie inflatable seat pad, and she is happy. I added the twist tighten inserts for my seat and it is much more secure.

Then, we bought the T handles for the paddles and now, never use the full paddles. You buy a Hobie Mirage for the pedals not to paddle it.

We use the Kokitat Kayak Pants to stay dry and with the bigger crocs/shoes/sandals needed to fit over the attached waterproof socks of the pants, our feet wouldn't fit in the Mirage stirrups. We took the stirrups off. Then, we found out for us, it was easier to pedal without the stirrups and our legs didn't get cramped as we could move them around. The Stirrups are stored with the cassettes and the other half of the paddles.

We bought the Amas and put them on. The extra stability is excellent and there doesn't seem to be any loss of speed or making the steering sluggish.

Store your Oasis upside down and if there is sun get a cover.

Getting our Oasis in and out of the water with the floating wheel Trax is a pia.

I have bought the large wheel C Tug which eliminates that problem.

Some will tell you the Oasis is light and no problem lifting up and off the racks/trailers or whatever you transport it on. It is isn't light for my wife and I. We are in our 70's and it is a hassle.

Lifting or loading it is a hassle for our two 40 something sons. One runs 3 times a week with his 50 pound back pack, he uses for hunting with his 90 pound recurve bow. The other rides his bikes 10k+ a year and is a cellar master in a busy 3 story winery. They give me that look, when ever I ask them to help turn it or load it.

Next spring, I will try the Hullivator to help load it and transport it, which has been used and reported on by members of this board to eliminate this problem.